Sheet deflection gate



Feb. 18, 1969 o. E. BROZO SHEET DEFLECTION GATE Sheet Filed June 1967 IINVENTOR. 1 DONALD E. BROZO ATTORNEY Feb. 18, 1969 D. E. BROZO SHEET DEFLECTION GATE Sheet 2' ofZ Filed June 7, 1967 INVENTOR. DONALD E. BROZO ATTORNEY United States Patent 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A selectively operable resilient gate for deflecting transported sheets from a main transport guideway to an auxiliary transport guideway. The gate is a simple, reliable member capable of operating in high speed sheet transport systems. The gate is a curved deflecting member which forms a continuous deflecting path to transfer a sheet from the main to the auxiliary guideways in one gate position. In a second gate position, the gate directs the sheets past the auxiliary guideway without interference.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Field of invention This invention relates to sheet feeding or delivering apparatus in general and particularly to controlling gates for selective delivery of sheets during transport.

Prior art In prior art sheet distribution equipment, one means for feeding or delivering sheets was by providing a system of chutes extending from the transmitting station to a particular receiving station. Thus, each receiving station had a unique chute path defining the passageway of the sheet to its ultimate depository. Once the sheet left the transmitting station, its destination was fixed as it would be wholly contained within a system of chute blades.

In other systems, gates positioned at the intersection of the main transport and an auxiliary transport would be manually controlled, thus, prohibiting high speed selective feeding and delivering of sheets.

Other apparatus for the feeding and the delivering of sheets have a plurality of auxiliary guideways intersecting the main guideway and each intersection controlled by a gate unit. These units would comprise deflecting plates extending into the main guideway when a sheet is to be shunted off into an auxiliary guideway. The gates would be actuated by solenoids, hydraulic valves or air valves. To restore the gate, various biasing means would be employed such as springs, a second solenoid or valve, or depnedence upon the force of gravity.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION A two positioned gate mounted at the intersection of two transport systems to direct and deflect a sheet traveling in one transport system into a second transport system. In a first position, the gate forms a portion of a wall defining the one transport system and preventing the sheet from entering the second transport system. In a second position, the gate deflects the sheet into the second transport system along a predetermined path of deflection. When the gate is transferred from the first position to the second position, a potential energy is stored in the gate which when released restores the gate to the first position.

organizations, advantages and uses of the invention described herein:

3,428,309 Patented Feb. 18, 1969 FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a section of a sheet transport system;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged plan view of the intersection of a first and second transport system shown in FIGURE 1 and showing the gate in its first position;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view partly in elevation taken along line 3-3 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged plan view similar to FIG- URE 2 and showing the gate in its second position;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the gate member.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION In FIGURE 1, there is shown a section a sheet transport system 10 comprising an inlet guideway 12, a first transport unit 14 and two secondary transport units 16 all mounted on a suitable base plate 18.

The inlet guideway 12 to the first transport unit 14 is formed by a pair of flared plates 20 and 22. These plates are mounted on and substantially normal to the base plate 18. The plate 20 will be referred to as the front plate, and the plate 22 will be referred to as the rear plate, the standard of reference as to front and rear being the center of the longitudinal or main guideway 23 which is formed by the inlet guideway 12.

Extending longitudinally from the inlet guideway 12, the rear plate 22 forms one side; namely, the rear side of the main guideway 23 of the first transport unit 14. A continuous belt 24, traveling on the front side of rear plate 22, is driven by a drive pulley 26 and guided by a main idler pulley 28, in the direction of the arrows shown in FIGURE 1.

In FIGURE 1, the idler pulley 28 is: shown in juxtaposition to the inlet guideway 12, and the drive pulley 26 is shown at the end of the main guideway 23 opposite the inlet 12. Mounted below the main base plate 18 and operatively connected to the drive pulley is an electric motor 30 for driving the belt 24. On one side of the belt 24; namely, the front side, and in contact therewith are a plurality of idler rollers 32. These rollers 32 are spaced a predetermined distance along the belt 24. This distance is substantially less than-the length of the smallest sheet to be transported in order that at all times a sheet in the main guideway 23 will be held against the belt 24 by at least one idler roller 32. Mounted on the rear side of the belt 24 and opposite each of the idler rollers 32 is a biasing member or flexure clamp 40 holding the belt 24 against the idler rollers 32. Each flexure clamp 40 is mounted to the base plate 18 by a suitable bracket 42.

Forming the front wall of the main guideway 23 are a series of plates 44 and 46 which are mounted substantially parallel to the rear plate 22. These plates 44 and 46 are mounted to allow the idler rollers 32 to bear against the belt 24.

In FIGURE 1, there is shown two secondary transport systems 16 which extend laterally from the first transport system 14. At the intersection of the first transport 14 and each of the secondary transports 16 there is positioned an idler roller 32 providing more control of a sheet transferring it from one transport system to another. A two positioned gate 48 is positioned at this intersection to direct a transported sheet along either the first transport system 14 or along the secondary transport systems 16.

The auxiliary guideways 50 are defined by a pair of spaced apart plates 52 and 54 extending upright from the base plate 18.

The means for moving a sheet along an auxiliary guideway 50 includes a drive roller 56 which is operatively connected to idler roller 32 by means of a drive belt 58. The drive roller 56 is positioned opposite an auxiliary guideway idler roller 57 allowing a sheet to be driven be- 3 tween the drive roller 56 and the auxiliary guideway idler roller 57.

Operatively connected to the gate 48 is an actuator which in the preferred embodiment is a solenoid 60 and a cooperating armature 62. The solenoid 60 is mounted on the base plate 18 by a suitable bracket 64. The armature 62 is supported free of the cylindrical sleeve 66 of the solenoid by a pair of parallel spaced apart fiexures 6S and 70. These fiexures 68 and 70 are connected to the armature 62 on either side of the solenoid 60 and are mounted as cantilevers t the base plate 18 by a pair of suitable brackets 72. When the solenoid 60 is energized, the armature 62 is attracted to the solenoid 60 by the magnetic field of the solenoid causing the flexures 68 and 70 to flex about their mountings 72. The energy stored in the flexures 68 and 70 as a result of this flexing is less than the magnetic force of the solenoid 60 but is suflicient to restore the armature 62 to its neutral position upon the de-energization of the solenoid 60. The use of the flexures 68 and 70 to support the armature 62 provides a clearance between the armature 62 and the inside cylindrical surface of the sleeve 66. Thus, there is o rubbing or frictional contact between the armature 62 and the sleeve 66 to cause wear of these parts.

From the elevation view as shown in FIGURE 3, the

sheet transport system can be divided into two sections; namely, the section adjacent to the base plate 18 and extending to the continuous belt 24 which is the drive or lower section, and the section beyond or above the belt 24 which is the sheet direction control or upper section. Therefore, in the sheet transport system illustrated, the sheets are driven edgewise along a section of their broadside which is nearest the base plate 18. This is not to be construed as a limitation of the invention but is merely one method of transporting sheets such as checks, record members, or similar documents.

The preferred embodiment of the gate 48 as shown in a perspective view in FIGURE 5, is a piece of resilient material having a thin rectangular cross section. The width W and the length L of the gate are many times greater than the thickness T. The gate 48 is shaped in the general form of a block E having a pair of parallel mounting arms 74 and 76 of equal length with an interconnecting cross arm 77 and a connecting arm 78. The vane or orthogonal section 80, which extends from one mounting arm 74 to the other mounting arm 76 and connecting all three arms, has a substantially greater broadside area than any of the arms 74, 76 and 78. All three arms 74, 76 and 78 are essentially cantilevers extending contiguously from the vane 80. The free ends of the mounting arms 74 and 76 anchor the gate 48 to the front plate 46 of the main transport system 14. The free end of the connecting arm 78 is connected to the armature 62 of solenoid 60. The vane 80 and the mounting arms 74 and 76 are curved in such a manner to define h the deflecting or guiding path for a sheet from the main guideway 23 to an auxiliary guideway 50. The curved shape of the gate 48 and the mounting arms 74 and 76, allows a more uniform and gradual change to the deflection of a sheet as it is directed from the main guideway 23 to the auxiliary guideway 50. For the operation of a gate alone without the additional requirement of sheet directing control, the gate 48 need not be preformed in an arcuate manner. The resiliency of the mounting arms 74 and 76 bias the gate 48 in its first position.

When the gate 48 is in the first position as shown in FIGURE 2, with the solenoid 60 de-energized, the outer circumferential or convex surface 79 of the vane 80 forms a portion of the front wall of the first transport system 14 allowing the sheets to proceed unobstructively along the main guideway 23 in the main transport system 14. When the gate 48 is in the second position as shown in FIGURE 4, with the solenoid 60 energized, the inner circumferential or concave surface 81 of the vane 80 and the mounting arm 74 and 76 forms a path from the main guideway 23 to the auxiliary guideway 50.

OPERATION Referring again to FIGURE 2, there is shown an enlarged plan vie-w of the intersection of the main guideway 23 and one of the auxiliary guideways 50. The gate 48 is shown in its first or closed position so that the approaching sheet 82 will bypass the auxiliary guideway 50 and continue under drive of the belt 24 along the main guideway 23. The outer circumferential surface 79 of the vane 80, as hereinbefore described, forms a part of the front wall of the main guideway 23. In this first position, the leading edge of the gate 48 is biased into a resilient pad 84 which is fabricated from a material such as rubber, urethane, felt, or like materials and is fixedly attached to the front plate 44.

As the sheet 82 is transported along the main guideway 23 past the leading edge of the gate 48, the sheet 82 is driven between the belt 24 and the idler roller 32. The flexure clamp 40 provides a back-up support for the belt 24 holding it in contact with both the sheet 82 and an idler roller 32.

Upon command from a central processor or a control center to deflect the sheet, shown as 86 in FIGURE 4, to the secondary transport 16, to the solenoid is energized. The gate 48 is transferred from its first or closed position of FIGURE 2 with the inner circumferential surface 81 against the pad 84 to the second or open position of FIGURE 4 with the outer circumferential surface 79 held against a second resilient pad 88 which is similar to the first resilient pad 84.

The opening or snap action of the gate 48 when the solenoid 60 is energized develops a high momentum in the vane due to the velocity of the gate 48 being the greatest at the instant of impact with the rear plate 22. The kinetic energy developed from this momentum must be dissipated when the gate 48 reaches its second position. One means of dissipating this energy is to permit the vane 80 to oscillate by bouncing against the rear plate 22. In high speed transport systems, this bouncing is objectional because the time of the bouncing frequency is slower than the time it takes a sheet to pass by a deflecting gate. Thus, sheet jamming or out of sequence sheet handling would occur. Jamming would be caused by the vane 80 closing on the sheet 86 and holding it between the rear plate 22 and the outer circumferential surface 79 of the vane 80. Out of sequence sheet handling would occur if the sheet passed by the bouncing gate.

To reduce the bouncing of the gate, the resilient pads 84 and 88 are placed to support the vane 80 in each position. The resiliency of the pads 84 and 88 provides an absorption medium to absorb the kinetic energy of the gate 48 on opening or closing and damp out the oscillations hereinbefore mentioned. For the purposes of the preferred embodiment, the walls of the main guideway 23 have their cross sections reduced or relieved in the area of the gate 48 so as to place the pads 84 and 88 out of the path of the transported sheets. In the alternative, a resilient pad could be affixed to each broadside of the vane 80 and accomplish the desired dampening.

With the gate 48 in its second or open position, a sheet, such as sheet 86 shown in FIGURE 4, is guided by the inner circumferential surface 81 of the gate 48 from the main guideway 23 to the auxiliary guideway 50. The sheet 86 is driven betwen the belt 24 and the idler roller 32 and directed by the gate along the guide plate 52. Before the sheet 86 leaves the contact of the idler roller 32, it is picked up or driven by the drive roller 56 in the auxiliary guideway 50. In order to maintain the speed of the sheet constant between transport systems, a belt 58 operatively connects the first transport system idler 32 with the secondary transport system drive roller 56. After the sheet 86 has left the main guideway 23, the solenoid 60 is de-energized.

When the solenoid 60 is tie-energized, the two flexures 68 and 78 will release their stored potential energy causing the armature 62 to be returned to its de-energized position. The potential energy in the mounting arms 74 and 76 in the gates second position assists in returning the gate 48 to its first or closed position. In like manner as hereinbefore described for the pad 88, the pad will absorb the kinetic energy of the vane 80 and dampen the oscillations caused by the impact of the vane 80 against the sudden stop.

As previously described, in the preferred embodiment the gate 48 is fabricated from a sheet of resilient material having a thin rectangular cross section. Because of this, the vane 80 of gate 48 tends to lag or bend away from the direction of gate travel. This is due to the inherent lack of stifiness of a piece of material of this relative size and shape. In order to have rigidity or to stiffen the vane 80, there is provided a pair of substantially parallel stiffening members 90 and 92 extending from a point within the vane 80 to a point partway along the mounting arms 74 and 76.

Thus, there has been described a two positioned gate formed from a continuous piece of resilient material and mounted at the intersection of two transport systems to direct and deflect a sheet traveling in one transport system to second transport system. In a first position, the gate forms a portion of the wall defining the one transport system and preventing the sheet from entering the second transport system. In a second position, the gate deflects the sheet into the second transport system along a predetermined path of deflection.

I claim:

1. In a sheet transport system having intersecting guideways, a mechanism for deflecting a sheet from one guideway to the other, said mechanism comprising:

a resilient arm having an anchoring end,

a vane joined to the other end of said arm and contiguous therewith and,

a connecting member extending out of and angularly displaced from the plane of said vane and between the resilient arm and the plane of said vane.

2. In a sheet transport system according to claim 1 wherein the arm, the vane and the connecting member is a continuous resilient member having laterally positioned stiffening means on said vane and said means extending partway along said arm.

3. In a sheet transport system according to claim 1 wherein said vane is a curved member and said connecting member extends tangentially from the plane of said vane in the direction of said resilient arm.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,7993 84 7/ 1957 Rutherford 198-84 2,974,948 3/ 1961 Molott 271-64 3,304,081 2/ 1967 Limberger 271-64- 3,347,367 10/ 1967 Smith 27l-64 RICHARD E. AEGERTER, Primary Examiner. 

